Defunctland: The History of World's of Fun's Orient Express

[007]

Felt this was a nice trip down memory lane.

[siberian khatru]

Originally Posted by burt

Me, doing time cards at WOF...80ish

"How YOU doin'?"

[Baby Lee]

Originally Posted by siberian khatru

"How YOU doin'?"

I was gonna say something mean like 'Patrick Duffy, halfway to pulling a Kaitlyn Jenner.'

[dirk digler]

That brought back alot of memories. I use to ride the Orient alot and on one trip we rode it like 10-15 times in a row...good times.

[LiveSteam]

Loved riding it at night in the dark.

[George Liquor]

I went to WoF on Allied Signal night way back in the day, right around the time the Mamba opened. There must have been 3 dozen guests in the park total. My buddies and I rode the Mamba about 6 time in a row without a wait. It was sweet.

I once saw a girl get off the Patriot, take two steps towards the exit and puke strawberry slushy all over the walkway.

Speaking of barfing at WoF, last time I went I drank about 9 margaritas in the adult pool at OOF. Then went to ride the boomerang. I at least made it to a bathroom before I lost my lunch (margaritas)

[LiveSteam]

Excellent vid

[Lzen]

That was a nice stroll through memory lane. I had forgotten about the Scream Roller. I remember when they changed to Xtreme Roller. Unfortunately, I never got the chance to try it like that. I haven't been to WoF in about 12 years. It's a shame that they haven't added any major rides in a decade.

[Skyy God]

Originally Posted by Baby Lee

When I was finally tall enough to ride [about 5-6 yo], I subjected my dad [I was tall enough, but had to have an adult accompanying] to about 30 straight rides on the Schussboomer. It was a Bendix/Allied/Honeywell employee appreciation night, so the lines weren't long, so I'd sprint out the exit yelling my head off and run right back into line. Easily 2-2 1/2 hours straight riding the same coaster over and over.

And 2 different times in HS, on school field trip, I won the biggest stuffed animal in the arcade [the one as big as a person] and gave it to a girl I was dating. The 2nd time, I was fortunate the girl in question was a freshman, so she didn't know I'd done this before, and luckier still my friends didn't rat me out.

Orient was always my favorite, though I could never decide if I liked the front [with the view straight down on the first drop], or the back [with the speed of being the tail-end of the acceleration on that drop].

When I went off to university, I kind of dropped WoF as a habit, right around when the Orient started aging. So I missed the decline and demise.

Oh, and many years growing up, my actual favorite part of WoF night with the family was, if I behaved myself my parents would let me get something cool for my bike at the BMX/Freestyle shop at the I-35 turnaround right outside the park. Not a lot of high-end BMX/Freestyle shops and certainly no online shopping in the early 80s.

Of course BL calls it university.....

[srvy]

Originally Posted by burt

I worked at Worlds of Fun from 1977 to 1983. I started out as a ride operator, and finished as a Ride Operations Supervisor. I just wonder how many of y'all I saw running around that park. We often did "doubles".. 1 shift on your daily ride then another at another ride. I had worked at almost every ride at one point.

Interestingly enough, they don't discuss the tragedies that happened there. The kid that got killed by the Scream Roller, and a head trauma on the Schushboomer, the park employee that just missed being killed but lost a leg, are the only 3 that I remember well

It was a great place to meet girls. Back then, about 3000 seasonal employees, half were young women, just out from under their parents thumb and very sexually curious. It was a glorious time!

Yeah the man who lost his leg was the supervisor of the mechanical department. I was there that evening when it happened it came over my radio just as I was crossing the bridge into the Orient. I ran back to to the schussboomer the mechanics were around him just as the nurse arrived. The car was stuck at the top of the incline hill the mechanics were up working on it and he was at bottom straddling the track watching them. It broke loose rolled back to the que line and he was not able to get his leg off track in time. It severed it clean at mid thigh. The park nurse save his life that night by getting a belt around his leg and closed off artery. I was groundskeeping supervisor we got trash bag from closet filled with ice and the nurses placed his leg in it in case. The paramedics took forever to get there it seemed. He lived and actually came back to work he used a motorized cart about a year later had a heart attack and died his wife said it was due to complications from the amputation. Was one of the worst things I saw and was right there.

[srvy]

Originally Posted by burt

Me, doing time cards at WOF...80ish

Your face is familiar but its been a long time. I worked at WOF at opening day through the 78 season. I started as a ground squirrel sweeping the park. We judged the the vomit by how many bags of voban (deodorized sawdust) it took to clean it up. Liquid was preferred over chunky and on the pavement we hated asswipes who tossed their lunch in the cigarette buttcans or trashbins. It actually was the most fun I ever had working.

The parties and park girls were awesome especially the naughty moulin rouge actresses and cotton blossom merchandising chicks. I could tell some stories there holy crap. If you never went to a maintenance grounds keeping party after the park closed over at airplane park at Bennington and South of Parvin Rd you missed out. Was some good times lifetime of memories in a few short years.

[eDave]

Patriot is a shit name for that new coaster.

[burt]

Originally Posted by srvy

Your face is familiar but its been a long time. I worked at WOF at opening day through the 78 season. I started as a ground squirrel sweeping the park. We judged the the vomit by how many bags of voban (deodorized sawdust) it took to clean it up. Liquid was preferred over chunky and on the pavement we hated asswipes who tossed their lunch in the cigarette buttcans or trashbins. It actually was the most fun I ever had working.

The parties and park girls were awesome especially the naughty moulin rouge actresses and cotton blossom merchandising chicks. I could tell some stories there holy crap. If you never went to a maintenance grounds keeping party after the park closed over at airplane park at Bennington and South of Parvin Rd you missed out. Was some good times lifetime of memories in a few short years.

Bet you remember the Soligo brothers. I vividly remember the twin girls in groundskeeping, Karen and Sharon. One would, one wouldn't....

[chinaski]

Speaking of the Scream Roller, I vaguely recall them changing the name of the ride and/or converting it to some kind of stand up coaster in the late 80's early 90's?

[Baby Lee]

Originally Posted by chinaski

Speaking of the Scream Roller, I vaguely recall them changing the name of the ride and/or converting it to some kind of stand up coaster in the late 80's early 90's?

--> ExtremeRoller --> EXT

It's outlined in the clip in OP as part of the whole WoF story.

[srvy]

Originally Posted by burt

Bet you remember the Soligo brothers. I vividly remember the twin girls in groundskeeping, Karen and Sharon. One would, one wouldn't....

Yes I do especially Sonny.